Stone ejector for field hay choppers



July 15, 1 47- E. F. HUDDL E STONE EJECTOR FOR-FIELD HAY CHQPPERS Filed Sept. 18, 1944 Patented July 15, 1947 STONE EJECTOR FOR FIELD HAY CHOPPERS Edwin F. Huddle, Elmwood Park, 111., assignor to International Harvester Company, a corporation of New Jersey Application September 18, 1944, Serial No. 554,613

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a new and improved stone ejector for field hay choppers and has for.

one of its principal objects the provision of means for automatically ejecting stones, roots, and other foreign objects from the hay or other cereal prior to the time the hay enters the cutting or treating chamber, thereby to save the chopper mechanism from damage.

An important object of this invention is to provide a convertible feed roll for field hay choppers in which the roll with radially extending paddles may be employed when the hay is dry, and the same roll with a rubber covering wrapped therearound may be used with a green-field hay chop-- per. Field hay choppers for dry hay are not likely to pick up stones or the like as the dry hay pick-up device comprises a rotor including a plurality of spaced fingers. A green-field hay chopper includes a harvester or'mowing element which rides on or close to the ground, in which position it is capable of and does at times pick up stones rocks or other objects. These stones are fed along with the cut hay up a conveyer to a hay-treating mechanism, such as a chopper, and may cause serious damage to the chop-ping knives. Hence it is an important object to remove these stones from the machine prior to the time they are permitted to enter the chopping compartment.

Other and further important objects of this invention will become apparent from the disclosures in the following specification and accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the field hay chopper of this invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective View detail of one of the machine's operating shafts;

Figure 3 is a detail sectional view of a portion of the field hay chopper of Figure 1, showing the ejector roll in greater detail; and

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 showing a stone being ejected.

In the drawings:

Reference numeral It! indicates generally a scoop shovel type of platform for a field hay chopper. The device as shown incorporates a mower cutter-bar I I and is adapted to cut standing cereals such as grain or hay and carry it up an elevator [2 by means of slats or the like I3, where it enters feed rolls I4 and I5. The cut grain is fed by compression between the feed rolls I4 and I5 and is thereupon delivered to a stationary knife I6. As the material is fed over this knife I6, a rotary cutting member I'I having radially extending knives I8 shears the material into short lengths.

The field hay chopper is pulled through the fields by means of a draft vehicle such as a tractor, and it is provided with a hitch or clevis member I9 which is readily attachable to a tractor 2 draw-bar. The clevis I9 forms the forward end of a tongue 28 which projects forwardlyfrom a wheel truck 2|. The wheel truck 2! includesan axle 22 and a pair of wheels 23. The scoop shovel platform It, a cutting or grain-treating chamber 24, and an elevator 25 constitute the field hay chopper, which is mounted so that it is substantially balanced on and over the wheel axle 22. A tractor power take-off is used to drive the field hay chopper driven elements. An auxiliary engine may furnish power for chopper also. A drive shaft 26 joins the tractor power take-01f (not shown) and extends rearwardly to a universal pointZ'I. A shaft 28 continues rearwardly to a universal joint 29 which has a further rearward extension 30 adapted to drive bevel gears (not shown) and to impart rotation to the transverse shaft 3!. A pulley 32 is mounted on the shaft 3| and lies in a common plane with pulleys 33, 34, and 35. These pulleys are mounted on transverse shafts 3 6, 31, and 38 respectively. A V-belt slip clutch 40. This slip clutch is associated with the pulley 33 in-that it has one clutch member M fixedly attached to the pulley, and the other opposed clutch member 42 is attached to the shaft 36 through the medium of a spring 43 and a nut- 44. The other end of the shaft 36 has keyed or otherwise attached thereto a sprocket 45.

The sprocket 34 on shaft 31 is equipped-with a crank 46 which is adapted to drive a pitman 41 to effect reciprocal operation of the cutter-bar I I. As best shown in Figure 3, this shaft 31 forms the support for the upper roller 48 of the conveyor l2. A short V-belt 45, with the aid of sprockets 50 and 5|, joins the shaft 31 to a crossshaft 52 on which is mounted the lower feed roll I4.

Another pulley 53 mounted on the shaft 3| is adapted to drive a pulley 54 by means of a V-belt 55. The pulley 54 is in turn mounted on crossshaft 56 which supports the rotatable cutter head H.

The elevator 25 includes a belt-type conveyor 51 which is driven from the shaft 58 on which is mounted the pulley 59. The pulley 59 is driven from the shaft 36 by means of a pulley (not shown) and a crossed V-belt 66.

The end of the shaft 36 which carries the sprocket 45 is on the opposite side of the machine from that shown in Figure 1. The sprocket 45 is adapted to drive a chain 6| which extends around a sprocket 62 mounted on a shaft 63. The upper feed roll I5 is mounted on this shaft 63 which is arcuately fioatable. The shaft 63 is adapted to float through substantially vertical opposed slots 64 in the side walls 65 of the paddles 1 1.

3 rain cutting Or treating compartment 24, An arm 68 is hinged at 61 about the shaft 36. The free end of the arm 66 is joined at 68 to the shaft 63, and it is apparent that the shaft 63 may swing upwardly through an are described about the shaft 36.

When a stone is picked up by the cutter-bar l l r and carried up by means of the conveyor l2, the feed rolls l4 and I5 attempt to carry the stone through in the same manner as it feeds hay or other grain. The upper roll [5 is capable of yielding upwardly a distance defined by the height of the slot 64. As the shaft 63 strikes the upper end of the slot 64, the feed roll [5 fails to yield further. If the stone 69 is larger than the space between the feed rolls l4 and 15, it will tend to stop the feed roll [5 and the slip clutch 40 will permit the pulley 33 to be rotated Without imparting rotation to the shaft 36 which drives the feed roll [-5.

The feed roll 15 comprises a cylindrical base and includes radially extending paddle or rib members H which are in the form of angle irons welded longitudinally of the roll and around the circumference thereof. As previously stated, when field hay choppers are used to pick up dry hay, there is only a slight chance of picking up stones or other foreign objects, and the feed roll is used with merely the base 10 and the radial However, when it is used with a harvesting mechanism such as employed in the device as shown, a rubber or any other elastic material covering 12 is stretched around the outer edges of the paddles or ribs 1|.

Referring now to Figure 3, the stone 69, if permitted to enter the cutting chamber 24, would most certainly cause a breaking of the rotatable knives I8. The purpose of this invention is to eject stones such as the one 69. The roll as shown has reached its uppermost position and the taut rubber covering 12 has been compressed between two of the ribs H. Th slip clutch 13 is of the type wherein immediately upon the clutch slipping one tooth it again grips and at tempts to drive the shaft 36. This causes an intermittent starting and stopping or an attempted starting and stopping of the rubbercovered feed roll l5. The rubber covering thereupon tends to contract or pull out straight where it is holding the stone 69, and the stone is ejected as shown in the position in Figure 4. In this Figure 4 position, the roll I 5 has resumed its normal relationship With respect to the feed roll the machine, said means including radially projecting ribs on said roll and having a superposed annular rubber covering stretched over the outer edges of said radially projecting ribs, whereby space pockets are provided at intervals around the roll.

2. In a stone ejecting mechanism for hayor grain-treating machines comprising, a pair of opposed feed rolls, and means associated with one of said rolls for effecting ejection of stones from the machine, said means including radially projecting ribs on said roll and a taut elastic material covering extending around the outer edges of said ribs, said roll being arcuately fioatable.

3. In a stone ejecting machine, a pair of cooperating feed rolls, driving means for said feed rolls, and a slip clutch positioned between said driving means and at least one of said feed rolls, said one feed roll having radially projecting ribs and a circular rubber covering extending around the outer edges of said projecting ribs leaving space pockets defined and enclosed by two adjacent ribs and the outer rubber, covering, whereby stones are automatically ejected from a'position between said ieedrolls when the stone causes inward stretching of the rubber covering and the action of the slip clutch intermittently drives said one 'feed roll and tends to cause the rubber covering to resume its original position.

4. In a stone ejecting mechanism for cerealt-reating machines comprising a pair of cooperating feed rolls, driving means for said feed rolls, a slip clutch positioned between said driving means and at least one of said feed rolls, said one feed roll being arcuately fioatable above the other of said feed rolls and havin radially projecting ribs and a taut rubber covering stretched around a circular path defined by the outer edges of the radially projecting ribs, whereby stones are automatically ejected from said machine when they cause an inward stretching of the rubber between the ribs and a tendency for the rubber covering to resume its original circular position.

EDWIN F. HUDDLE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 7 Number Name Date 2,342,282 Hill Feb. 22, 1944 1,631,446 Worthington June 7, 1927 77,209 Parsons Apr, 28, 1868 285,422 Lockhart Sept. 25, 1883 2,385,451 Krause et a1 Sept.25, 1945 767,086 Scovil Aug. 9., L904 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 11,933 Great Britain Aug. 18, 1888 

